Category Archives: disease

The CDC has updated its guidelines on the spread of COVID-19

The CDC has updated its guidelines on the spread of COVID-19. The CDC describes near contact as being within six feet of the person infected for 15 minutes or more during a 24-hour span. It is difficult to identify the current guidelines on which the health departments depend to perform touch tracing. The signs of the infection vary from minor symptoms to extreme illness, according to the CDC. It is not clear if the public has undergone proper instruction on proper selection and use of respiratory PPE, such as N95, for close interaction with an infectious person wearing a respiratory mask. Symptoms of the disease include: fever, chills, shortness of breath, trouble breathing, sore throat, and muscle aches, the CDC says. The disease can last 2-14 days after exposure to the virus and can be serious or moderate in some cases, it says. It is not clear if an affected person has signs for more than two days after being exposed to coronavirus, the Agency states.

Reference

CDC revises “close contact” definition. https://www.emergencyemail.org/newsemergency/anmviewer.asp?a=23565&z=58

Public health authorities and drug manufacturers need to be open regarding the side effects of coronavirus vaccine

Public health authorities and drug manufacturers need to be open regarding the side effects of coronavirus vaccines, doctors say. Doctors met with CDC advisers as states plan to administer doses as early as next month. Both Pfizer and Moderna vaccines need two doses at different intervals. Participants in the trials registered high fever, body aches, extreme headaches, day-long fatigue after the shots. “We need to make patients aware that this will not be a walk in the park,” says Dr. Sandra Fryhofer. Nurse practitioners recommend that drug manufacturers should use terms such as “response” instead of “adverse reaction” to explain side effects. “If this proves to work, people are going to toughen up,” says the nurse practitioner.

“These are immune responses,” says Stinchfield, a former member of the committee who voted. “If you feel something after vaccination, expect to feel that” Pfizer and its partner BioNTech applied for an emergency license for their coronavirus vac.

Reference

Doctors say CDC should warn people the side effects from Covid vaccine shots won’t be ‘a walk in the park’. https://www.cnbc.com/2020/11/23/covid-vaccine-cdc-should-warn-people-the-side-effects-from-shots-wont-be-walk-in-the-park-.html

Both the Pfizer vaccine and the Moderna vaccine were developed with new technology

Both the Pfizer vaccine and the Moderna vaccine were developed with new technology that uses messenger RNA. Neither Pfizer nor Moderna has reported any serious safety issues in their trials so far. An independent group of advisers will review vaccine data to the FDA and the CDC. The FDA will decide whether to grant authorization for emergency use; then, the CDC will decide who gets the vaccine. The advisory committees do not have the authority to make decisions, but they follow other groups’ recommendations, Salmon says. The decision does not end at the time of recommendation, Lee says. “We are always in creating new data as it emerges, so it can ch so that,” she says. Back To the pageYou came from: The page you were from. The CDC will craft guidance for the CDC about prioritizing, who receives the vaccine. First, Salmon said.


The public will view trial data and observe discussions as the Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee conducts its review in early December. “It will include public deliberation, and that is a good thing,” Salmon said. Salmon added that this type of transparency would be a crucial way to bolster public trust and combat misinformation. This is particularly important because the pandemic has become heavily politicized.


Reference
Will the Covid vaccine be safe? What the scientists want to see.https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/will-covid-vaccine-be-safe-what-scientists-want-see-n1248466
What is mRNA? How Pfizer and Moderna tapped new tech to …. https://www.nbcnews.com/science/science-news/what-mrna-how-pfizer-moderna-tapped-new-tech-make-coronavirus-n1248054
What Is Homework’s Purpose in a Pandemic?. http://www.ascd.org/publications/newsletters/education-update/oct20/vol62/num10/What-Is-Homework’s-Purpose-in-a-Pandemic%C2%A2.aspx

Masks in public places

Coronavirus Covid-19 increased by 467 percent in Kansas counties, requiring masks in public places. The number of cases fell within six weeks of the mandate, according to the CDC. The study looked at the disparities between the Kansas counties in the summer. Some counties that did not need masks had less strict instructions, according to the report. The CDC reports that the rate of Covids-19 cases has primarily been reversed after the mandate has been enforced.

Reference
CDC says mask mandates can slow Covid-19 spread. https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/cdc-says-mask-mandates-can-slow-covid-19-spread-n1248417?cid=eml_nbn_20201120

Zika has never triggered a significant human epidemic in Africa

Zika has never triggered a significant human epidemic in Africa, except in Cape Verde. Aedes aegypti spreads mainly through one species of mosquito that thrives in tropical climates around the world. Forest-dwelling types tend to feed on animals such as rodents or antelopes. On the other hand, the human-loving type likes to bite people and spends its life close to people, experts believe. The disparity in feed choice is possibly why the virus has not been such a significant problem in Africa. The research was published in Science on Thursday.
Study: African mosquitoes are more immune to infection than human-loving Latin American mosquitoes. Africa’s mosquitoes are less likely to pick up the virus from contaminated blood. According to the report, the pattern of infection is surprisingly well associated with the epidemiological pattern of infection. According to the author of the report, the results help clarify why there was a massive outbreak of the virus in Latin America. “It was almost too nice to do that. What do you think may be Africa’s success in preventing epidemics?

Reference
One Dangerous Mutation May Cause the Devastating Birth …. https://www.newsweek.com/one-dangerous-mutation-may-cause-devastating-birth-defect-tied-zika-673748
Why Does A Virus Cause Problems In One Region But Not Another? A Study Offers Insight. https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2020/11/20/936649934/why-does-a-virus-cause-problems-in-one-region-but-not-another-a-study-offers-ins

Indoor behaviors do not all bear the same degree of risk, health experts say

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, these indoor behaviors are far more dangerous indoors during the pandemic. More than 60 positive coronavirus cases were connected to one spin studio last month in Hamilton, Ontario. Indoor behaviors do not all bear the same degree of risk, health experts say. The airflow, which can be controlled by air quality expert Richard Corsi, is a critical indoor variable. Some gyms and indoor sports facilities have upgraded air filtration systems and security cleaning plans. In the U.S., 8 out of 10 deaths associated with coronavirus were among people 65 and older. Vast indoor fields are less dangerous than big indoor gymnasiums or tennis courts with a few people playing far apart. Especially when sweating and heavy breathing are risky, exercise without social distance is risky. While the chances are small, the virus could be transmitted by handling equipment or picking up a ball. Spend less time running if you go to a gym or an indoor court.

Reference
Trump Has An Elevated Risk Of Severe COVID-19. But It …. https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/trump-has-an-elevated-risk-of-severe-covid-19-but-it-helps-to-be-the-president/

Study: immunity from SARS-CoV-2 can last for at least six months

Study: immunity from SARS-CoV-2 can last for at least six months, or it may be longer, maybe a matter of years. Researchers also studied different forms of immunity, including antibodies, B cells and two groups of T cells. The study included 185 U.S. adults aged 19 to 81 who had recovered from infection with COVID-19. Researchers: Antibody reaction among the “200-fold set” participants in the study. The findings are consistent with the] latest discovery of SARS T cells 17 years after the original infection,” according to researchers. The findings are consistent with the latest observation that survivors of the SARS epidemic already had T cells more than a decade after recovery, they add. The results were released on Monday in the open-source e-virus journal iReporter on the bioRxiv pre-print server. The research was carried out by scientists at the La Jolla Institute of Immunology in California and the Icahn School of Medicine in New York.
Reference
Coronavirus immunity could last more than 6 months, possibly years: study. https://www.foxnews.com/health/coronavirus-immunity-6-months-possibly-years-study

Danish study finds that face masks provide only limited protection

Danish study finds that face masks provide only limited protection against SARS-CoV-19 infection. Researchers say findings should not be used to argue against widespread use to prevent people from infecting others. After one month, 1.8% of people wearing the masks had been infected, while 2.1% in a control group. Health experts have long said a mask provides only limited protection for the person wearing it but can dramatically reduce others’ risk.

Reference
Danish study finds face masks provide limited protection …. https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/reuters/danish-study-finds-face-masks-provide-moderate-to-no-protection-against-covid-19/46169826

Interleukin-1 has been involved as a mediator of chronic pericarditis

Interleukin-1 has been involved as a mediator of chronic pericarditis. A phase 3 trial of rilonacept was performed in patients with acute symptoms and systemic inflammation. During the run-in period, the median time for pain resolution or near-resolution was 5 days, and the median time for normalization of CRP was 7 days. Injection site reactions and upper respiratory tract infections were the most common adverse events. Among patients with chronic periecarditis, treatment resulted in rapid resolution and a slightly lower risk of recurrence than placebo. The most common side effects were injection site reactions and upper respiratory tract infections.

Reference

Phase 3 Trial of Interleukin-1 Trap Rilonacept in Recurrent Pericarditis. https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2027892

Guidelines prescribe that one or more antiarrhythmic medications

Guidelines prescribe that one or more antiarrhythmic medications be tested before catheter ablation is considered in patients with atrial fibrillation. First-line ablation could be more effective in preserving sinus rhythm, we’ve discovered. Severe adverse effects resulted in 5 patients who underwent ablation and 6 patients who prescribed antiarrhythmic drug treatment. Patients undergoing initial care for symptomatic, paroxysmal atrial fibrillation had a slightly lower risk of recurrence with catheter cryoballoon ablation than with antiarrHythmicDrug, as measured by continuous heart rhythm testing. The median ratio of time of atrial fibrillation was 0 per cent (interquartile scale, 0 to 0.08) with ablation and 0.13 per cent with drug treatment compared to 0.60 per cent with ablated therapy.

Reference

Cryoablation or Drug Therapy for Initial Treatment of Atrial Fibrillation. https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2029980